Identifying the Role-playing Factors in Defense-Security Collaborations between Islamic Republic of Iran and People's Republic of China (PRC)

Islamic Republic of Iran, with a futuristic view, developments in the geometry of power and gaining strategic benefits based on capacities and capabilities in meeting the needs of empowerment, dynamic activism in regional and extra-territorial security arrangements and the like, can develop and strengthen defense-security cooperation with PRC in various fields, especially defense diplomacy. The central aim of this paper is to identify the factors that play a significant role in these collaborations. This is an applied-developmental study in terms of purpose, and its method is a case-field one with a mixed (qualitative-quantitative) approach. In this study, 23 important and effective factors have been identified and prioritized that play a role in defense-security collaborations between the two countries in both favorable and existing situations. In the current situation, the geopolitical and geostrategic position of the two countries with a coefficient of 81.8%, the position of PRC in the international system with a coefficient of 80.0%, the new US strategy in Asia with a coefficient of 76.4%, the consensus of these two countries on the central role of the UN, and international institutions have the greatest impact on resolving issues with a coefficient of 72.7%, and in the favorable situation, the position of PRC in the international system, the efforts of the two countries to prevent the use of unconventional weapons (nuclear, chemical and microbial) and relations between the PRC and regional and international powers with a coefficient of 98.2%, the two countries' compromise on the pivotal role of the UN and international institutions in resolving issues, the two countries' demand for a new political and economic order with the participation of all countries, geopolitical position and the geostrategic of the two countries have the greatest influence with a coefficient of 96.4%.